The Image
by PennyGirl
Summary: Nothing of their children's whereabouts were known. Not until the Tam's received the image. slight simon/kaylee mention- sort of


Disclaimer: I don't own Firefly or any of its characters. Although it was a really great show. I miss it so.

The Image

It had all started with letters. First it was river's letters to Simon, saying odd things and misspelling words that had caused him to go after her. To give up everything and disappear. Than it was a letter from the alliance. Stating that their son and daughter were now wanted felons, and that they were to report any news or information they had immediately. Shortly thereafter, there had been a search. Their home and Simon's had been torn apart by officers and soldiers looking for any evidence. Or any clues, that would help them to find their two children. Than, for a year, there was nothing. Just silence. No word of anything on their children. Occasionally there would be a notice, or a wave from a friend, stating when a new warrant for Simon's arrest had come out. But other than that, there was nothing.

Than the Miranda wave came.

Both Gabriel and Megan had been at home. Having dinner while the mirror screen played a concert in the background. Than out of nowhere, it switched over, and a distraught woman was giving a report that started with the words, "these are just a few of the images..." speaking of a place called Miranda. A world where terra-forming had taken place and air had been muddled with. A world where people had gone mad and turned into horrifying creatures. It repeated several times, and than…than there was silence.

Shortly thereafter, they received a wave from a friend in the law enforcements office. It was simple, and clear to the point. Their son and daughter were cleared. They were not wanted. Their warrants were gone.

It had been an exciting moment for the Tams. Their children were free to come home. Free to regain their lives. And hopefully they would try to regain the relationship they had once had with their parents once again.

But sadly, it was not to be. Wish as they might, and search as they did, they received no word from their son or daughter. They sent waves out to multiple planets, and hired numerous investigators to help them. Help them in any way possible to find out if their children were alright. If they were healthy. If they were even alive.

Months passed before they received word of anything. And even then it was not much. It came not from someone with sources in the government, or someone who roamed the planets looking for their quarries. It came instead from a fried. He was not a close friend, more of an acquaintance really, and he did not send them a letter full of niceties and how are you's? Instead he sent them a vid image wave from his recent trip to Persephone. He'd gone there to purchase a ship dock and parts yard, and while taking images of the place, he'd recorded the best news the Tams could have hoped to receive.

Reagan tam received it first, and was playing it over for the second time and on the verge of tears when her husband walked into their office to find her. "Dear?" he asked.

"Simon…" she whispered, and hit the replay button again. "It's Simon. And river too!"

"What?" Gabriel tam bent down to see the screen clearer as it began to play.

_A young woman strolls around the parts yard, humming a song and looking over various bit's and pieces, stopping when something catches her interest and looking it over briefly before shrugging and tossing it back into it's pile. She does this several times before squealing and diving for a part. "I found it!" she yells, waving it in the air and jumping up and down._

_A male voice laughs in the area off the screen and says, "You've been here five minutes! Look longer!"_

_The woman on the screen huffed. "But I found it now! Tell them we'll take it!"_

_A younger girl skips into the screen. Long brown hair bound back in pigtails to show off her pale, delicate face. Two pistols hang off her body, one on her hip and one on her shoulder. _

"River!" Gabriel exclaims.

_River eyes the part. "It's broken," she states simply._

_The woman shrugged. "Yeah, but only a lil. Not so's much as I can't fix it."_

_River eyes the part again, looking over shoulder at something off screen, she turns back to say, "He'll still charge the same if it was a good one."_

_"No he won't," spoke a male voice. A taller figure walked into the image onscreen. Rough cut black hair, strong features. _

"Simon…" breathes Megan, tearing up at the sight of her son and daughter together. She watches as Simon takes the part from the girl and hands it to river.

_"Get him to give it to us with a good price will you?" Simon asks. _

_River takes the part and nods. "Has a taste for shoes," she mumbles, walking away off screen._

_The woman grins. "What does that mean?_

_Simon shrugs. "Does it matter?"_

_The woman thinks for a moment and shrugs. "Chuai bu." She puts her hands on her hips and pouts at Simon. "Well, since I don't have ta negotiate a price outta the old hou bi wa I have all this free time." She reaches up and fiddles with a button on Simon's shirt. "What ever shall I do with it?" she asks, smiling brightly up at him._

_Simon grins and the woman squeals as he wraps an arm around her waist and dips her backwards before kissing her soundly on the lips. As if they were in a vid-movie off the cortex._

_After a few moments he pulls back and pulls the woman back to standing, her hair more mussed than before and her lips redder than before. "Oh my…" she comments._

_Simon grins and river skips back into the screen barefoot and singing, "Nu shi sa." Over and over again. She reaches Simon and the woman and says. "I didn't get the part."_

_"What!" the woman exclaims._

_River holds out what looks like the same exact part. "Got a new one instead. Half the price. Already handled payment."_

_The woman grins and wraps river in a hug. "Mei mei, good job!"_

_River rolls her eyes as she's let go and hands the woman the part. "Hungry now. I think I'll go find some food." River turns and walks away and off the vid screen image. Simon watches her go before turning back to the woman. "Should I ask why she isn't wearing shoes?"_

_The woman shakes her head. _

_Simons shrugs. "Alright than. She's right though, food sounds good. You hungry?"_

_"Xiang si ma!" the woman exclaims, and joins arms with Simon and they walk off the vid image. Faces smiling and full of happiness. _

Gabriel reaches forward and turns off the screen. "How old is it?" he asks his wife.

Megan pulled up the details on the image. "A couple of months. He found it while going through the security records for the lot."

Gabriel taps the screen and pulls up the last image of the woman and Simon laughing arm in arm. "They're alright than," he comments.

Megan pulls out a handkerchief and dabs at her eyes. "They look happy," she says softly.

Gabriel frowns and than looks at his wife. "Do you want to keep looking?" he asks.

Megan sighs and shakes her head. "Leave them be. They look happy. And they are free." She looks back to the screen and traces her sons face. "What more could we want?"

Gabriel nods his understanding and watches as his wife taps the screen.

The image fades, and the screen goes black.

* * *

_chuai bu- guess not_

_hou bi wa –monkey arm pit_

_Nu shi sa – lady shoes_

_Xiang si ma – like a horse_

_

* * *

_A/N: it's my first firefly fic ever. So please be nice if you review. And I apologize now for how bad the Chinese might be. Otherwise, I hope you enjoyed.


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